


Blue ain't your colour (It is mine)

by MissingNickname



Category: Home Free (Band)
Genre: 1950s Cruise Ship AU, Adam has ice powers in this, Don't ask me why, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-22
Updated: 2018-09-22
Packaged: 2019-07-15 09:05:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16059908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissingNickname/pseuds/MissingNickname
Summary: December 1956.Adam Rupp works as a waiter and singer on a cruise ship together with his colleagues and friends Tim Foust, Rob Lundquist and their boss Adam Chance, commonly known as "Chance". Between the four of them, they keep the ship's restaurant and entertainment program running. It might not be the most exciting of lives, but despite long shifts and a chronic lack of staff, he is content. If he also happens to have a some unusual powers and a deep connection with ice and coldness, well, nobody (except for Chance) needs to know. Life is simple, nothing to worry about apart from a stressful holiday season.That is, until their newest crew member, a young man by the name of Austin Brown, becomes part of their team.This story also features: Adam's excessive love for iced coffee, getting high on mundane substances, irresponsible sleeping schedules, an appropriate amount of Shipping and sass, winter weather and a lot of companionable silence (what do you expect, it's Adam.)





	Blue ain't your colour (It is mine)

**Author's Note:**

> This has been inspired by Home Free's music video to Keith Urban's "Blue ain't your colour". And I owe my thanks to Justlikethe80sfilms (https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justlikethe80sfilms/pseuds/Justlikethe80sfilms) for listening to my random plotting and encouraging me to actually turn my ideas into a story.

It was dark outside the small, round window when his alarm clock started ringing. Adam blindly reached for it, turned it upside down, and smashed the „off“-button against the bedside table. Blessed silence. With a heavy sigh, he peeled himself out of the blankets and sat up. “Quarter past five” the hands of the clock indicated. They still glowed faintly – it hadn’t been more than a few hours since he had lain down for the night. Christmas time on a cruise ship was the same every year: stress, chaos, an overworked crew. But it also meant glorious, golden lighting for the stage, glittering decoration everywhere, Christmas songs on the cheap, tiny radio in the mess room and anticipation and cheerful people bustling around everywhere, who were more than usually inclined to tip their waiters. And, most of all Christmas meant winter. Cold ice and snow kissing his face, greeting him like a friend, whenever he set a foot outside. He stepped over to the window and covered the glass with a soft exhale. Then, he drew a “14”, neatly in the middle of the circular pane, and a little smiley face next to it. Ten more days till Christmas Eve. He watched the writing fade before he turned his back and slipped into his uniform.

“Mind the coffee machine,” Rob greeted him when he entered the mess hall. He looked more asleep than awake and was sipping a glass of water. Next to him stood a mug of steaming coffee, still almost full.  
“Hm?” Adam shot him a questioning glance.  
“Darn thing is broken again, I swear. Coffee’s scalding. Also tastes horrible.”  
“He burnt his tongue,” Tim supplied from his corner seat with a massive yawn. “Thank god my shift’s over.” He gave Rob a cheerful little wave, nodded his head in Adam’s direction and stumbled out of the back door.  
“Long night?”  
“You have no idea… People loved the show last night. Chance said to keep going, it’s good money we’re making. ‘S also my feet we are killing, though.”  
Adam grinned. “Take the early shift off. I got things under control”  
“The Lord sent you here, buddy.” Rob got up and emptied his coffee into the sink, kicked the counter the coffee machine was standing on and followed Tim.  
“Not a problem,” Adam said quietly, smiling. He flicked off the way-too-bright neon light as soon as the door had closed behind his colleague. The lanterns on the deck outside provided enough light to discern the silhouettes of the furnishing. Much better for this early hour. He loved night time on the ship. It felt so silent; motionless save for the gentle movement of waves rolling underneath them. They were the only ship for miles and miles. In a way, out here was his own little universe of peace, quiet and the welcoming dark blue of a cold night.  
The fridge started humming, reminding him that life was moving on and he had places to be. But first, coffee. He stared down the blinking light of the buttons as he emptied the machine of the used powder, put in fresh beans and water and placed his favourite mug in the right spot.  
“You’re broken, hm? Dare to defy me.” Gurgling, rattling and steaming, it spit out a cup’s worth of dark brown liquid. It _was_ scalding. He reached for the kitchen towel, shielding his hand as he gingerly picked up his drink and blew at the coffee with a gentle hiss before discarding the towel again. Little pieces of ice clinked against the spoon as he left the mess hall and made his way towards the kitchens with a spring in his step and a perfect iced coffee.

“Adam?”  
“Adam?”  
Chance grinned. He looked as awake as ever, even though he had probably worked the night shift just as Rob and Tim. “You can’t resist, can you?”  
“Nope. What’s up?”  
“You know the new guy we took on two weeks ago?”  
Adam took a sip of his coffee and thoughtfully stared at the pattern of the carpet floor. “Lanky guy with sad eyes? Quite young?” Chance nodded. “That’s him. He’s called Austin Brown. Management wants him to work on our team for now.”  
“Why?” Adam frowned. “It’s tough learning things around here during the holiday season stress.” His boss shrugged. “I think they just want somebody else to deal with him. He kind of fucked up down in the engine room and needs a different job.” “That’s random,” Adam commented and started wiping the tables. Chance nodded, stealing Adam’s mug and taking a sip.  
 “Ice? What the heck is wrong with you, Rupp?”  
Adam grinned. “Serves you right, get your own coffee.” He righted the heavy wooden chairs and moved on to the next table.  
“Fair enough. So, Brown. I don’t know why we took him on anyways. Word is he was pretty desperate. Needed a job, maybe needed to get away, who knows.”  
“And now you get to deal with him because you give everyone the feeling that you’re competent?”  
“I wasn’t aware you were able to say sentences this long.”  
“Shut up.”  
“Ah, that’s the Adam I know.” Chance laughed. Then he got serious once more. “I met the boy yesterday evening. He seems a bit lost. But I think he’s a good lad, and I want to help him. Sucks as a waiter, though, so far. I was actually hoping you could help him out a little bit. Show him how things are done. How not to trip over his own legs while carrying dishes, y’know?”  
Adam frowned in thought and finished up the last table. “Will see what I can do.” He headed back towards the kitchens. “Does he also sing?”  
“See if you can get him to. He has a pleasant enough voice. But so far, he’s been pretty tongue-tied.”  
“I think I like him already.”  
Chance actually snorted. “I was expecting that.” He held the door open with one hand and clapped the other on Adam’s back. “He will drop by here around nine. I was counting on Rob to coax him out of his shell a bit, by the way.”  
“Rob? I sent him to bed, he looked like death warmed over.”  
“Then you got the newbie all to yourself. Congrats.” Chance chuckled. “See if you can’t get him into shape a little bit.”  
Adam mock-saluted. “Aye, sir!” This should be interesting.

At nine o’clock sharp, a slim boy with long curls of dark blonde hair knocked on the door to the kitchens. Adam looked over from the couple whose breakfast order he was currently memorizing. He wound his way back through the tables and chairs, collecting empty dishes as he went. By the time he reached the other, he was precariously balancing plates on both hands and arms. “Lookin’ for me?”  
He took a measured step back out of the boy’s reach as he startled and hastily turned around.  
“Mr. Rupp, sir?”  
“Just Adam. Nice to meet ya.”  
“Alright, Mr. – I mean, um, Adam. I’m Austin, Austin Brown.” He extended a hand before he realized that Adam was unable to take it with his arms full of dishes. Blushing, he let it fall back to his side and bumped his elbow on the kitchen door. Adam carefully kept his expression passive; his heart went out to the insecure boy. He looked so vulnerable.  
“Mind opening the door for me?” The boy seemed relieved to get out of the awkward situation.  
“The door? Yeah, sure –” He pushed it open and held it so Adam could follow him through.  
The waiter gracefully stepped around the bustling chefs and assistants as he got rid of his dishes and relayed orders to the guy running the pass at top speed. “Table seven – two coffees, one small orange juice, two croissants, table thirteen – hot chocolate, scrambled eggs and bacon, one small bottle of water, table eleven –” Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Austin, who still stood rooted at the spot next to the door, staring at him with a slightly terrified expression. He quickly finished calling out the orders, grabbed the ready meals waiting for delivery and headed back towards the dining room.  
“I, uhm – I’m not sure I can do all of that,” Austin mumbled as he followed him back out.  
“Let’s talk during the break, ok?” Adam replied out of the corner of his mouth, already approaching the tables. “Breakfast’s busy. Just watch for now.”  
Watching, Adam discovered, was certainly something Austin had already mastered perfectly. He had never felt so carefully observed before. And that was saying something, considering that he sang on stage most of the evenings. It made work tricky. More than once, he had to place himself in between those watchful blue eyes and his hands as he did what Chance called “working his magic” but Adam preferred to refer to as “supreme customer service”. As he lightly stepped around the tables he subtly renewed ice cubes in drinks, kept ice cream from melting, froze plates together in precarious stacks and reheated lukewarm coffee (for the prize of freezing his own hands, as he took in the coldness and defied all known laws of physics, like on any usual morning), cooling the temper of any irate guest as he restored their dishes to peak quality. He kept a careful eye on the younger boy. Tim and Rob never paid this much attention. Only Chance did, but, well, good luck to anyone trying to keep _him_ in the dark about something.  
It was only after the last guest had finished their breakfast and exited the ornate swinging door to the main corridor that Adam allowed himself a break. Sitting down at one of the tables at random, he beckoned Austin to join him. Hesitantly, the younger one sat down on a chair next to him. Eyes fixed on the floor, no longer staring, Adam noted. Really seemed to be the shy type. He extended his hand.  
“Let’s do it properly this time. Welcome to the team!”  
Austin’s hand felt warm against his skin, still icy from three busy hours of work. The boy flinched at the unexpected temperature but returned the handshake like any proper gentleman. “Thanks,” he mumbled. Adam smiled. “Pleasure to be working with you. So. You probably have questions?”

Throughout the next few hours, Adam found himself growing fond of the shy boy’s company. He didn’t mind teaching him the job at all. The other one didn’t talk much, which suited Adam just fine, but he was quick on the uptake. For the morning, Adam mostly had him help on clearing up and delivering dishes, since that meant he wouldn’t have to talk to people. More than once, he narrowly saved a plate from falling. Every time, Austin turned crimson and mumbled hasty apologies. He seemed terribly self-conscious and insecure, always fiddling with his hands, not knowing where to put his arms, unable to stand still for one second. As the morning shift was nearing its end, he seemed ready to give up and hide in his quarters for the rest of his life. “Hey, that wasn’t too bad!” He gave the younger one an encouraging smile as they sat down in the mess hall for a quick meal of their own.  
Austin hid his face in his hands. “I nearly dropped how many plates?” he groaned. “I was terrible.”  
“You mean to tell me you didn’t actually break a single thing during your first shift as a waiter?” Tim’s deep voice cut in as he closed the door behind him and began raiding the fridge. “That’s a new record. Even Adam here,” he nodded toward the blond man who was leaning back in his seat and getting comfortable, “dropped at least two, if I recall correctly. Apples incoming.”  
“Three,” Adam confirmed and deftly caught the fruits Tim was throwing his way.  
“Any cheese left in there? I could swear we still had those bread rolls from breakfast.”  
“Nope. Chance ate them.”  
“Ugh. The traitor.”  
Tim made a vaguely affirmative noise. Austin was staring again.  
“Chance – isn’t he the boss?” he asked timidly.   
“Yep. And a traitor, as it appears,” Tim confirmed cheerfully. “Behold! We got pizza leftovers!”

During lunch, Adam made Austin practice memorizing orders.  
“You have to give the words a rhythm in your mind. Make a song from them, if you like. You will never have to write anything down as long as you keep your thoughts in the right rhythm.”  
Austin gave him an uncertain look.  
“Just try, you will see. Follow me, listen for a bit.” He approached the first table, shadowed by the younger boy. “Would you like to order, sirs?”  
And so, the day went on, as they took orders, served meals and generally did their best to keep the guests happy. Tim shared the afternoon shift with them, but Austin stuck to Adam’s side like a shadow, listening closely as the waiter showed him how he transformed orders, seat numbers and people into a smooth, rhythmical flow of whispered words. Adam’s help quickly paid off. By the end of the afternoon shift, Austin was whispering the orders back to him in the kitchen. For all his insecurities, the boy was surprisingly creative. And when Tim beckoned him over near the end of the shift, he gave Austin a quick nod and motioned for him to go on to the kitchen. “You go call the last batch of orders. Just remember, you have a voice. Chef’s gotta hear you through all that din in the kitchens.”  
He lightly stepped over to Tim. “What’s up?”  
“Just help me out here for a sec. The newbie’s gotta learn to use his voice.”  
Adam chuckled. “That’s what I told him.”  
They quickly finished things up and followed Austin to the kitchens. At the door, Adam stopped in his tracks, strangely touched. His protégé was standing, just like this morning, rooted to the spot and looking mildly terrified, but his sky-high voice rang through the entire room as he, smoothly and without mistake, called out the song he had made of the orders. And for a moment, beneath all the insecurities, there as a warmth and happiness shining in his eyes that Adam hadn’t seen before.  
  
Apart from the one tiny glimpse he gained that day, Austin’s personality beneath his timid surface remained a mystery to Adam. He didn’t seem very inclined to be social; they spent most of the time in companionable silence, working alongside each other without exchanging a single unnecessary word. Austin threw himself into the work, eyes fixed on Adam when he felt unobserved and glued to the floor whenever anybody addressed him unexpectedly. He didn’t seem to be idle for even one second as long as his shift lasted. Guests loved him, because he was always ready and polite, quickly learning the key points of customer service. As long as he was on shift, he put on a cheerful, if slightly shy mask. And as soon as the end of his shift rolled around, Austin vanished. That set the rhythm for the next few days.  
Adam didn’t have too much time to ponder the new addition to their team, though. Christmas got closer with every day – and the hours got longer, the days and nights busier. The festive mood was spreading among the passengers. Everybody seemed to enjoy eating well and staying up late, talking, dancing and listening to the music Adam, Tim and Rob played on the small stage of the restaurant. On most nights, one of them played the piano while the others sang, alone or together. On the nights when Chance decided to join them, they made a great barbershop quartet. Those were Adam’s favourite nights. And when the show was finally done and even the most persistent and cheerful of guests had found the way to their room, when the tables were cleaned and the kitchen tidied, Adam made his way up to the highest decks and drank in the crisp night air, letting the coldness clear his head and the wind calm his busy thoughts after the rush of the day. The weather was becoming stormy. Sometimes, little snowflakes would dance around his arms as he lifted them towards the dark and velvety sky. And when he was certain to be alone in the light of the waxing moon, he would turn the clouds of his breath into a thousand glittering ice crystals with a flick of his finger and with a click of his tongue send the ice along the railing of the deck. Then, he would go to sleep in his tiny little room, dreaming peaceful dreams and waking with a fresh and sharp mind before the dawn of the next morning.

“I don’t know how ya do it, Adam,” Rob groaned. It was half past five in the morning, five days till Christmas Eve, and Rob looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks.  Adam was sitting next to him, upright and awake, eyes closed against the bright neon light, but with a content expression. He was lightly tapping the leg of the table with one foot as he stirred his coffee, complementing the rhythm of the clock on the wall.  
“What do you mean? Looking awake or enjoying the coffee?” Adam returned.  
“Both, actually.” Rob put his face in his hands and yawned. “Christmas is killing us. I pulled a double yesterday. Twice. Tim is late. Oversleeping, like I’d like to. I swear the coffee machine is broken. And you’re sitting here, cheerful and awake as ever.”  
Adam opened his eyes and looked at his colleague, slightly worried. “It really gets to you guys this year, huh?”  
“I don’t get how you manage it,” Rob sighed tiredly. Adam got up and made another coffee. With a flick of his fingers, he adjusted the temperature before turning around and passing it to Rob.  
“There. Get that caffeine,” he said softly. “It’s decent coffee, I swear.”  
“Thanks, buddy. You’re an angel.”  
“Nah. ‘M just me. I’ll go tell Chance to give you the night off.”  
“Remind me to hug you later. Not getting up now.”  
Adam laughed. “Will do.” He grabbed another coffee and made his way over to the office.

“People who knock before six will get exorcized,” Chance’s most formal voice rang though the closed door.  
“Would like to see you try.” Adam opened the door, just a crack, and slipped into the cozy room. He placed the extra coffee on the heavy wooden desk and threw himself into his favourite armchair. “How about burning me at the stake, huh?”  
“Funny.” Chance rolled his eyes from behind the stacks of paper and files that cluttered the table. “Ever tried touching fire? Six a.m. isn’t the best time for logics, but given your nature, I wouldn’t recommend.” He reached for his coffee. “This better not be iced again.”  
“Nah, I’m actually making an effort to be nice this morning.”  
Adam grinned.  
“Pleasant surprise. How come?” Chance retorted drily.  
“Tim and Rob are way overworked. I worry about them.” He sighed. “At this pace, they are both going to break down before the 24th.”  
“I know.” His boss sighed. “This year is a nightmare. But what am I supposed to do? Between the two of us, we’ll never keep the place running half the night.”  
“What about Austin? His voice is great.”  
“If you get him to stand in and sing –,” Chance took time to dramatically sink down on one leg in front of his desk. “If you manage that, I might actually propose to you. I have tried talking to him for the entire past week. The boy won’t even talk more than two words if he doesn’t have to!”  
Adam’s eyes shone with mischief. “So that’s why he’s never around after shift! You’re monopolizing our newest addition!”  
“You tempt me to throw something at you,” Chance, still on the floor, replied completely straight-faced.  
“But honestly, do you know where he hides after shift? Maybe we should invite him to hang around, get him to open up,” the waiter said thoughtfully. His boss nodded. “Worth a shot.” He got up from the floor again, dusted off his pants and downed the rest of the coffee in one go. “Tell Rob he can have the night off – I’ll tell Timmy to stay in bed. Good luck with shy boy.” And he was off.  
  
Adam invited Austin to stay and listen to his performance with the rest of the guys that night. Austin seemed shocked at the prospect of somebody wanting him around. “Are – are you sure? I mean, you guys don’t have to, or anything, I’m – I’m fine, I wouldn’t want to be a bother…,” he rambled hastily, fiddling with his uniform sleeves. Adam gently put his hand on Austin’s to get him to stop and look back up. “Hey. ‘S no trouble. You’re part of the team. You’re more than welcome.”

That night, Adam was singing together with Chance. He loved performing during the holidays more than any other time of the year. The warm, golden lights, the dark wooden paneling and the carpeted floor created an atmosphere of warmth and comfort against the cold, blue darkness on the other side of the broad windows. Glittering tinsel was hung around the stage and two Christmas trees flanked its sides. The grand piano at the back of the stage was polished to a gleaming black and reflected the lights. And in between, Adam and Chance got the performance going flawlessly. Chance had just hopped over from his office, looking very business-like with his black suit and blue tie, since he was standing in for Rob. Adam had happily exchanged his black-and-white waiter’s uniform for a fancy pinstriped button-down shirt and a matching blue bowtie. Dressing up for performances was part of the fun. So were the carefully choreographed dance moves, always subtly flirting with the audience in the manner of an accomplished gentleman. Here, on stage, at the heart of the performance, Adam felt at home. He felt the currents of warm air, heated by the radiators at the walls and by the spotlight above the stage, and measured every single movement so he wouldn’t unleash the ice from within the depths of his soul. Smoothly turning and stepping around the microphone stands, coordinating his moves with Chance and the music, crisp coldness at his fingertips at every second, but never letting go of it, he felt alive. And tonight, he had even more reason to enjoy the performance. The prospect auf Austin being around somehow made him redouble his efforts. Often, he found his eyes returning to the table in the corner where Tim was trying to make conversation with the shy blond boy, who was sipping a coke and watching the show with an indiscernible expression. Not for the first time, Adam wondered what his story might be.

Later, Tim found him in the dressing room back stage. “That was a good night, man. You were fantastic!” His colleague clapped him on the shoulder and nearly threw Adam, who struggled to get out of the polished black leather shoes, off his balance. Adam bit down a curse as he froze the shoelaces together and he straightened back up.  
“Thanks, Timmy. That marks four more until Christmas Eve. How did Austin like the evening?”  
Tim laughed. “I think you really made an impression on him. He said even less than usual.”  
“I what?”  
“Awwwww. Shouldn’t you be used to having fans by now?”  
“Shut up,” Adam retorted flatly.  
“You can’t perform in a way that makes everybody’s hearts melt and then expect that people don’t love you, y’know?” Tim said teasingly.  
“Ugh.” Adam shook his head. “Tomorrow it’s your turn to turn the ladies’ heads with your smooth bass notes, ‘cause _I_ will be having the night off.” He grabbed his clothes and headed for the door.  
“I didn’t just refer to _ladies_ ,” Tim’s voice followed him as he walked down the corridor.  
In the privacy of his room, Adam allowed himself to ponder that as he unfroze his shoelaces and readied himself for the night. Was his colleague just being a tease, as usual, or was there something more to his words? Well, there was nothing for it but to wait and see.

The next evening was the first free evening Adam had had in ages. He didn’t mind the lack of sleep, as Chance well knew, so he usually got the late shift as well as the early one. He was determined to enjoy this rare exception. As they smoothly wrapped up the afternoon shift, he invited Austin for the evening for a couple of drinks.  
“You gotta hear Timmy here sing,” he added, before Austin had an opportunity to refuse. “I can’t believe you’ve been on this ship for almost a month now and still don’t know the force of nature that his singing voice can be.” He saw Tim flipping him off from the corner of his eye.  
“Have you ever heard Adam say so many words in one go?” the bass whispered to Rob. “Nope,” the other man replied cheerfully. “They seem to be good for each other, if you ask me.”  
Adam serenely turned his back on his two friends and proceeded to completely ignore them.  
“So? What do you say?” he prompted Austin.  
“I mean, … I guess? If you want to?” Austin offered, flustered and uncertain.  
“I would be happy to,” Adam returned without missing a beat. “See you at eight in the restaurant!”

They met at the same table Austin had occupied the day before. Adam ordered drinks. Austin was sticking with a coke, but Adam laced his own with a generous helping of rum. Tonight was an occasion for celebration.  
For a while, they were just leaning back in the comfortable chairs, watching in companionable silence as more guests slowly filtered in and Chance and Tim got the stage ready. “That’s the tenth time,” Adam commented idly as Tim got his foot caught on a piece of loose tape and wire and nearly tripped. He was surprised to hear Austin giggle. “He doesn’t learn?”  
“Nope. Never.” Both laughed. Chance looked over to their corner – and tripped in the same place.  
“That’s a first.”  
“I guessed,” Austin said. “Chance usually seems so smooth and organized.”  
Adam agreed. “Can’t fuck with Chance.” He thought about it a while and added “Take that literally and metaphorically.” Austin nearly spit out his drink. He coughed, slightly embarrassed. “O-okay then.”  
Adam chuckled quietly. “Get used to shit like that. Once the team gets to know you better, they are worse than me. ‘Cause I don’t talk as much as them.”  
“Really? They, um, they seem nice so far…”  
“Nice, sure,” Adam agreed with a fond smile. “But they are also some of the biggest idiots I ever had the fortune of working with, believe me. Take, Tim, for example. He’s _such_ a troll, you wouldn’t believe…”  
As Chance took another glance at the two guys in their corner, they were immersed in conversation. Adam was gesticulating animatedly as he relayed a story of the team’s antics. Austin was laughing, throwing in comments, and seemed to have forgotten his reserve and insecurities for the evening. The melody of his unrestrained, happy laughter was sending chills down Adam’s back, but nobody needed to know that. So he kept talking, smiled until his face started hurting, ordered another drink or two and fully enjoyed Austin’s awestruck expression when Tim started singing and went for all the low notes. The evening was just perfect, hours flying by. Before he knew it, it was time to tidy up and close the restaurant for the night. He hummed cheerful songs to himself and all but skipped back to the kitchen with his and Austin’s empty glasses.  
Bidding the others goodnight with a nod and a little wave, he returned back to Austin, who was waiting near the door. “Dunno about you, but I think it was a great night. Thanks for your company!”  
“I, er, I think so too? Thanks for inviting me,” Austin smiled shyly but with sincerity.  
“Not a problem at all.” Adam shot him a broad smile, gave him a quick hug and left for his quarters, humming under his breath and with a spring in his step.

Later that night, he climbed up to his usual spot on the highest deck and happily flopped down against the railing, head turned towards the vast black sky. He still felt the warmth of good music, cheer and a measured amount of rum running through his veins. It made him giddy and restless, wanting to embrace the whole world. He extended his arms to the sky, laughter on his lips in memory of the evening, and began drawing flowers of ice into the thin air, onto the surface of the clouds, in spiraling patters around the railings and branching out to the wooden planks of the deck. Glittering flakes rained down around him, prompting him to get up and join their slow dance, ice and clear coldness flowing through him with more ease than ever before. When he was done, moonlight was breaking through the clouds and colouring the world around him in a thousand shades of frozen blue. With a soft smile, he stretched out one hand and called the ice back to himself. It turned into thins strands of mist with a gentle hiss and dispersed in the mild breeze. Then, he sank to his knees, shaking his head in disbelief. “I am drunk,” he whispered, laughing quietly to himself. “When did that happen before?” He buried his face in his hands, still laughing. “Well, that was a night, wasn’t it just?”

The next morning, Chance cornered him before he had a chance to get to the mess hall for breakfast. “Listen up, Rupp, you got tonight free,” his boss stated in a tone that brooked no argument. Adam looked at him dumbfounded. “Can you repeat that, I think my ears are still sleeping,” he said flatly. “’Cause I heard that you want to give me two free nights in a row in _Christmas season_.”  
“That’s about right,” Chance agreed amiably.  
“….Why?”  
“Well, Tim told Rob about yesterday, I happened to listen, and we all agreed that extraordinary times require extraordinary measures.”  
“The heck are you talking about, Chance?”  
“Basically, Rob said he will take your shift because he wants to see you ‘be adorable with Austin’ and I couldn’t dissuade him.”  
Adam was at a loss for words.  
“Not that I tried very hard,” his boss added as an afterthought.  
“…‘Be adorable’?” the waiter inquired, making quotation marks with his fingers.  
“Yep.”  
Adam shook his head fondly. “You – all of you, the entire team – are dumb idiots.” He grinned. “Thank you.” And then skipped off to the kitchen.  
(“Three,” Chance noted drily, under his breath. Three times that his most reserved, controlled and smoothest employee had skipped down the corridor, all because of a certain blond-haired boy.)

Throughout the day, Austin and Adam worked smoothly alongside each other like they had from the start. They didn’t exchange many words. But to Tim, Rob and Chance, who knew Adam better than the man was aware, it was easily visible how happy he was despite his usual silent and controlled manner. And all of them were extremely pleased to have arranged another “date” for their friend. (At least that was what Tim called it…)  
As the evening approached, Adam invited Austin for another round of drinks. Rob set the mood for the evening with slow and quiet songs, accompanied by Tim on the piano. Adam resolutely ignored any and all suggestions his colleagues might be making with that choice of music and settled down comfortably at their usual table. No alcohol for him today – he figured that it was time to get to know Austin a bit better, get past his insecurities and bring out more of that bright, unconcerned laughter. So they could be seen putting their heads together, talking softly in their little corner; about work, about the ship and their favourite spots (Adam was touched to learn that Austin’s was on a little balcony near the bow of the ship, right above the surface of the water, where the wind was always present and carrying little drops of salty water), the people here, crew and guests, and many other things. Finally, Adam carefully broached a subject that had been on his mind since he’d met Austin for the first time.  
“So, what has brought you here? I mean, why take a job on a ship, of all places?”  
Austin shrugged and the sadness returned to his eyes, his expression turning reserved once more. “Nothing special, I just… I needed to get away for a bit.”  
Adam’s face softened. “It can be like that sometimes. I’ve been here for years. Got hired after my parents died. Landlord threw my brother and me out of the flat, we needed money.” Austin jumped at the opportunity to distract from himself. “So, what’s your brother do now?” “Works at the port. He hates ships. Gets sea sick.” “Oh.”  
It was Adam’s turn to shrug. “Sometimes that’s just how it is. I miss him. But we will meet in a month, when we return to the home port. We’ll probably get two or three weeks off, if we’re lucky.”  
“You’re lucky anyway. You got somebody,” Austin mumbled. Adam paused for a moment. Then he agreed softly. “I am.”  
Thoughtfully he straightened his back and looked around. Rob was taking a break and unabashedly staring at them, with a silent “awwwww” written all over his face. Tim was goofing around at the piano. And in the reflection on the dark windows he occasionally glimpsed Chance pacing in the corridor, talking to people, carrying files and doing his thing. And then there was Austin sitting next to him. Timid, insecure, vulnerable Austin, who seemed to carry burdens of his own, but still chose to let Adam attempt to befriend him.  
“I’m very lucky indeed.” He shook his head and sighed. “If there’s anything I can help you out with, just let me know.”  
Austin acknowledged the offer with a tiny nod. “Thanks. I’d rather just not think about things though.”  
But even as they returned to lighter subjects once more, Adam couldn’t help but wonder what had hurt his boy deeply enough to bury the happy and unconcerned spirit that had been shining in Austin’s eyes the other night whenever he thought about it.  
Wait. _His_ boy? Where had that come from?  
He had a lot to think about, that night, in the silence of his quarters. Sleep only found him in the early hours of morning.

The ringing alarm seemed inhumanely early even by Adam’s standards next morning. It took him longer than usual to get ready and tell the right shoe from the left one. The number on the window pane read “22”. Snowflakes were dancing in the wind outside. Christmas was approaching fast. When he finally entered the mess hall, he only found Chance there. Frowning, he checked the clock on the wall. Ten to six already.  
“Where’s everybody?” he mumbled, reaching blindly for a cup. Chance sighed. “Rob almost collapsed after the show last night.”  
“Oh shit.”  
Chance nodded. “Lack of sleep. He just doesn’t know when to stop. I told him to stay the hell in bed today. I would like to still have a Rob Lundquist working for me after the holiday season.”  
Adam froze his coffee solid and heavily fell into his seat. He felt slightly bad that he hadn’t noticed anything but Austin yesterday evening. “Don’t do that,” Chance admonished. “Somebody could come in.”  
Adam shrugged. “Does the management up there ever wonder how we run this business with roughly four whole people?”  
“I guess not. They are happy as long as I stay within their ridiculous budget.”  
“Figures.” He gloomily let the coffee melt enough to be drinkable. Ah, sweet, bitter coldness clearing up his head. “I can take the morning on my own if you need me to.”  
“Thanks, Adam. You’re the absolute best.”  
“I know.” And finally, he managed his first real grin on this tired morning as Chance flipped him off and left the room.

Yes, usually Adam was at home on the stage, in the midst of the performance, surrounded by warmth and golden light. But that night was exhausting even for him. Tim was distracted, getting caught up in the stress of the day, and needed a gentle reminder every now and then to not lose his head in the face all the things waiting to get done. Maybe he was biased, but the guests seemed prone to complain throughout the entire day, demanding this and that, never being satisfied. Adam had taken over all of Rob’s shifts and completely foregone breaks save for a hasty lunch. By the time evening and the show rolled around, he was going through the moves on autopilot, but his heart wasn’t in it. The whole day had felt off, somehow.  
He was glad to see Austin and Chance sharing the corner table, despite everything. At least one of his friends had managed to not get caught up in the weird mood of the day. Austin still wasn’t really talking much to any of the others outside of work, but at least he was there, having a drink, being social, more or less. Performing for him made things more enjoyable, too.  
That was, until about halfway through the show, when the boy suddenly got up with a blank expression and hurried out of the room. Adam reinforced his professional mask and kept singing without missing a beat, but on the inside he felt uneasy. He had never seen Austin look like that, not even when he was a ball of insecurity and anxiety during his first day on the team. He wondered what had prompted the reaction. It was impossible to focus on that and performing at the same time, though, so he did his best to stay focused until he could call it a night. He noticed Chance getting up and leaving shortly after Austin. When he finally got off the stage, his body demanded a bed, but his brain demanded to go search for his friend. Chance took the decision out of his hands. He entered the dressing room as soon as Adam had sat down to get out of his shoes. “Let’s skip your questions,” he offered, “and go right ahead to my answers. I have no idea why Austin left, we didn’t talk before – it was out of the blue. I didn’t find him for a good while, but now he seems to be in his room. At least the light was on. I didn’t bother him, though. Go sleep, Adam. You look like you need it.”  
Adam just stared at him while his tired brain processed Chance’s words. His boss put a gentle hand on his shoulder. “You can take care of everything else in the morning.”

Chance turned out to be right about the sleep, it did help. For once, Adam got to skip the early shift, so he was well rested when he entered the mess for a lazy breakfast at eight thirty. Austin was sharing the late morning shift with him. When he entered the mess, his greeting still sounded withdrawn and preoccupied. He looked like he hadn’t had much rest in the previous night. Adam passed him the strawberry jam and some bread. “You ok?”  
Austin seemed startled for a moment. Then he relaxed a bit and said “Yeah, fine.” with false cheer in his voice. He returned his gaze to the table, where he was methodically dissecting a slice of bread. Adam gave him a worried frown, but Austin naturally didn’t notice. This was shaping up to be another strange day.  
Throughout their shift Austin’s mind didn’t seem to be on the job at all. He was clumsier than usual, nearly dropping plates and mixing up orders. Adam didn’t mind, it gave him an excuse to stay close to the younger one and help him out, but it concerned him.  It reached a peak when they were both entering the kitchen, arms stacked with used dishes. Adam was quick to put his dishes where they belonged. But when he turned around, he saw Austin slipping on a patch of wet floor.  
The next few seconds passed in a blur. Instinctively, he pushed all the coldness within himself into a tiny box in his mind and slammed the lid shut as he took a swift step over to his friend’s side, one arm extended to catch the dishes, the other grabbing Austin’s wrist and stabilizing him. No need to accidentally freeze the kitchen. Somewhere off to the side, he heard the familiar warning call “Hot behind!” but it was swept out of his mind the instant his skin came into contact with the other’s hand. Immediately, a sensation of cold hit him. It wasn’t the clear, welcoming sort he was so intimately acquainted with; it was bleak and empty and shook him to the core. He flinched violently and stumbled back, letting the tableware clatter into a sink as he tried to regain his balance. Somewhere, somebody was shouting “Look out!” and then he crashed into something. The next thing he knew was his vision turning black as a burning sensation of extreme heat shot through his right hand up his entire arm. His legs gave out and he felt himself fall.  
  
“Shit, Adam? Do you hear me?”  
…  
“Move him to the side!”  
…  
“Somebody go get Chance!”  
…  
“We need another order 67, fire!”  
…  
“Someone clean up over here!”  
…  
“Adam? Come on, Rupp, look at me!”  
Slowly, the chaos of shouting voices began to separate into single sentences again. Adam blinked, trying to get the world back into focus. He was propped up against a kitchen cabinet off to the side, away from the line. Chance was kneeling next to him, hands on his shoulders and looking at him intently. “Back with us?”  
“Mhm… think so?”  
“Good. Stay with me. Are you in pain?”  
Adam nodded briefly, closing his eyes again and letting his head fall back with an exhale.  
“Fuck. Burns…”  
“I gathered that,” his boss deadpanned, but the undercurrent of concern in his voice betrayed him. “Anything else apart from that?”  
It actually took him a few minutes to get past the overpowering pain in his right arm and take stock of the rest of his body.  
“Foot hurts. Might’ve sprained my ankle?” he stated, mildly surprised. The other man sighed. “You don’t do things by halves, do you?”  
Adam didn’t know what to answer. So he stayed silent and focused on breathing deeply while Chance got up and went away. He returned with Tim.  
“Adam? You look like shit.” The usually smooth bass voice sounded alarmed. Adam opened his eyes and managed a weak smile. “Hey, Timmy.”  
“Get him to my office,” Chance commanded shortly. “Take Austin with you. I’ll cover the rest of the shift.”  
Tim nodded and grabbed Adam’s left hand, pulling him up with ease. The room took a while to stop swaying, but the taller man easily supported him. He wrapped his arm around Adam’s back and took most of his weight as they made their way through the back door and crossed the corridor to the office. Austin trailed them nervously, guilt written all across his face as he was obviously beating himself up over what had happened.  
Once they reached the office Adam gratefully sank down into the comfortable armchair and closed his eyes. Tim cleared picture frames and files from a small side table and carried it over for Adam to put his foot on. He even found a cushion, Adam noted with detached surprise. He felt weirdly spaced out. If his colleagues talked to him, he didn’t listen. Distantly, he was aware that somebody from the medical personnel entered the room and asked the others what had happened. Somebody took his shoe off and put ice on his ankle. The only thing that really got through to him, though, was when his right uniform sleeve was carefully being peeled up. It exposed a long streak of angry, burnt red from his palm up halfway to his elbow. And _fuck_ , that hurt. It felt like a fire was still burning under his skin; the sensation disturbing and wrong and oh so painful. The sound of his harsh breathing filled his head and he retreated to the tiny corner within himself where he had crammed the ice and comforting coldness. There, he stayed.

“There, that should take care of everything. See that he gets a bit of rest and doesn’t move around too much,” the medic told them, fixing the bandage around Adam’s arm. Austin swallowed, even though his mouth was dry. He felt terrible. All of this was his fault.  
“Why is he so… weird? Why doesn’t he talk any more?”  
“Most likely it’s just his way of coping with what happened. Accidents like that are chaotic and happen so fast, it takes a while to process everything once it’s over. And he’s dealing with some bad pain from that burn.”  
“Oh,” Austin mumbled, feeling even guiltier.  
“Don’t be too worried about it; he will come out of it within a few hours at most. No lasting harm has been done.”  
Tim put a comforting hand on his younger colleague’s shoulder and politely thanked the man.  
“Not a problem. I’ll be off. I will leave some painkillers; give them to him when he asks for them. No more than two per hour.”  
And with that the medic took his leave. He met Chance at the door. They exchanged a quick greeting; then his boss closed the door softly and turned to Tim and Austin.  
“How’s Adam?”  
Tim relayed the doctor’s orders. Chance nodded, relief obvious on his face.  
“You guys look like you could use a break,” he said quietly. “How about you go to the mess hall and have some lunch? Rob is covering the noon shift, would be cool if one of you could assist him, but you still have a while until then.”  
Both men got up. Tim just nodded at his boss in silent understanding, but Austin spoke up. “I’m so sorry, it was all my fault–“  
Chance shook his head. “It was an accident, Austin. Don’t blame yourself, sometimes accidents are inevitable,” he said gently. Tim wrapped an arm around the younger one’s shoulder.  
“Come on, let’s get something to eat.”

When Adam came back to reality again, Chance was sitting with him.  
“Chance…,” he murmured, gingerly rubbing his forehead. “I had the worst day ever.”  
His boss sighed with a look of fond exasperation. “Tell me about it. Glad to have you back, Mr. Rupp, sir.”  
“’M not sure I’m glad to be back, yet,” Adam muttered with a frown. “You got water?”  
Chance nodded and uncapped a bottle. “Sure thing. You want something against the pain?”  
“Oh god, yes.” With a little help, he got two small pills and some water down his throat.  
“I hope these things work fast…”  
Both were silent for a while. Then Chance cleared his throat. “So, what the hell happened there in the kitchens? How come the only guy on my team with the power to instantly deep-freeze whatever he comes across gets _burnt_ on duty?”  
Adam stared straight ahead for a while, letting his eyes roam over the framed photographs Chance had hung on the wall behind his desk. Some were of his family, some showed Chance together with a big, shaggy dog. And somewhere right in the middle there was a picture that had been taken years ago, briefly after his first cruise on the ship. Tim, Rob, Chance and he were all standing at the railing of one of the upper decks, their backs turned to the sea, arms wrapped around each other’s backs and wind blowing the hair out of their faces as they were smiling at the camera. He smiled as he remembered that day. It had been in late February and they had just left port for a big trip down to the Caribbean. They were still way up north and their heavy jackets, peaked caps and turned up collars spoke of the chill of winter. They couldn’t care less, though – their excitement was showing in their beaming smiles. They looked so young. It had been what, seven years? At least. His younger self reminded him of Austin a little bit. Or it would have reminded him if Austin hadn’t been so timid and weighed down by this terrible, cold emptiness he had felt for a split second, back there in the kitchens.  
Chance had followed his gaze. “Seems like ages ago,” he said softly. Adam nodded. He couldn’t quite comprehend what he was feeling. These guys were his family, together with Chris. They’d been so young and happy and without a single concern back then. And while they might be older now, nothing else had changed, really. They joked, worked their asses off and had each other’s backs just as back when they had started working together. The enormity of that realization made his eyes mist over. “You guys,” his voice was heavy with emotion, “you guys are the best friends I could ever ask for.” Chance turned to him and looked him in the eyes with a searching gaze.  
“Not to say I don’t love you like a brother, Adam, but you are high on painkillers right now. How’s the arm feeling?”  
“You’re an idiot, Chance,” Adam smiled. “But you’re probably right. I don’t even feel my arm any more.”  
“Good.”  
They were silent for a while. Then –  
“I froze my shoelaces together the other day because Tim startled me,” Adam said out of the blue. His friend gave him a look that said “What?”, “How even” and “I have no idea where you are going with this, but keep talking.” in equal parts. Adam sighed and tried to sit up straighter. “I was afraid I would give myself away today in the kitchens,” he admitted softly. “As soon as I saw Austin falling, I basically shoved all of my powers as far away as possible. I didn’t want anything bad to happen.”  
Chance exhaled heavily and rubbed his face with his hands.  
“It wasn’t supposed to end up like that. I could have caught him _and_ the plates. But –” He felt his friend’s eyes on him as he stared into nothingness and tried to find words for what had happened.  
“When I… touched him… I don’t know why, I have shaken hands with him before and there was nothing, but today… it was like getting hit by ice, but the ice wasn’t my friend… I have _never_ felt…”  
He fell silent, helplessly shaking his head. The memory made a shudder run down his spine. He felt Chance squeeze his good hand. The other man spoke with an uncharacteristic softness.  
“I know today was a freakin’ mess, basically. This holiday season is a nightmare. I also know Austin means a lot to you and obviously, there’s something troubling the boy and you want to help him. But in the middle of all that, please don’t endanger yourself again like that. You got goddamn second degree burns from a goddamn _frying pan_. Colliding with something hot kicked you right into unconsciousness. You know,” he chuckled helplessly, “I wasn’t being serious the other day when I asked whether you had experimented with touching fire. You’re one very unique human, Adam, but that also means you gotta protect yourself. Please, promise me, next time a situation becomes so stressful you aren’t sure whether you can keep yourself in check, take a step aside. Get out of harm’s way when you aren’t confident you can handle things. Remember, we got your back if you need it. And I would also very much like to still have one Adam Rupp on my team when all of this chaos has passed. Please be careful.”  
Adam was at a loss for words. He squeezed his friend’s hand in return and nodded shortly.  
“Promise. And, Chance… thank you.”

That evening before the start of the show they had a crisis meeting in the mess hall. Rob made hot chocolate for everybody (Adam subtly turned his into cold chocolate as soon as he received it) and they drew up the schedule for the next week. The medic had strictly forbidden Adam to work with his right hand for at least one week.  
“So that means you’re out as a waiter until past New Year.”  
“No,” Adam grinned. “That means I only have one hand to carry dishes with. Count me as half a person.”  
Chance snorted. “I might consider counting you as a quarter of a person with an eighth of a brain once you’re down from your painkillers. You get high on those, man.”  
Adam threw a napkin at his head. He missed.  
“But if we pull a few doubles here or there, we should be able to cover the days just fine,” Tim pointed out. “Austin can stand in for Adam and then it’s business as usual, basically.” The rest nodded in agreement. “Hey Chance, how about I do your paperwork and you serve at the tables full time?” Adam suggested with a grin.  
“Yeah, sure,” his boss retorted drily. “And sign contracts left-handed, probably with smiley faces, and stare customers to death instead of talking to them. No, thanks.” He shook his head in mock horror.  
“But what concerns me is the shows. Adam was performing almost every evening –”  
“– because his sleep schedule is unreal,” Rob butted in. “Like, honestly, what the heck? He does the show and then is up and all awake for the early morning shift, I don’t get it.”  
Adam raised his mug to the other man. “It’s because I’m extremely awesome,” he said earnestly.  
“It’s the painkillers,” Chance groaned. “Not only do they make him high, they make him talk. It’s horrible. We should have counted our blessings while he was silent.” The others erupted in laughter. All around the table, the relief that their friend was (almost) back to his old self was tangible. The accident had given all of them a scare.  
“I, um –,” Austin suddenly raised his hesitant voice. He seemed to shrink back in his chair when the others turned to look at him. Nonetheless, he continued speaking. “I could stand in for Adam, maybe. I can sing…” He trailed off.  
Chance got up, went down on one knee in front of Adam’s chair and grabbed his good hand.  
“Adam Rupp, I am a man of my word. Will you marry me?”Adam stared at him, dumbfounded, for a good minute, before their conversation from four days ago (Only four days? It seemed like an eternity.) came back to him. Then, he whacked the kneeling man over the back of the head. “You’re an idiot, Chance,” he reiterated what he’d said earlier in Chance’s office. Austin stared at the two of them, utterly lost.  
“Don’t mind either of these dorks,” Tim told him. “I think that’s a great idea. _Not_ the marriage, but you singing. I could show you the moves; you probably know most of the songs. We usually do the classics from the radio, so you should be good.” Austin nodded. Rob grinned in excitement. “Awesome! So, we have, what?” he checked the clock, “About an hour to get Austin all set and ready.” He clapped his hands. “Let’s get started!”

For the next hour, the mess hall was filled with cheerful chaos as Tim and Austin decided on a routine for the show, assisted by Adam. Teaching the younger man their dance moves turned out to be a lot of fun. Though Austin was all limbs and lanky awkwardness, between Tim’s examples and Adam’s comments from the side he quickly started to adopt the graceful movements he had already seen during the past few evenings. He didn’t have Adam’s measured elegance and control nor Tim’s confident presence, but soon enough, he was dancing around the mess hall, in equal measures smooth and energetic. It was captivating to watch. And, best of all, it seemed to help him forget whatever was weighing him down and it made his blue eyes shine happily.  
The show of that night was a roaring success. The guests had already come to love Austin as a waiter, but now, with his beaming smile and sky-high, beautiful voice, he enchanted ever last one of them. His soaring melodies and riffs perfectly complemented Tim’s warm, powerful bass, and Adam found himself thinking of wind whispering around mountaintops and gently descending into the deepest canyons, where it met rumbling earthquakes.  
“Rob?” He cleared his throat and shook his head in amazement as he turned to his colleague, who was sharing the corner table with him.  
“Yeah?” Rob asked hoarsely.  
“Remember last week when you promised me a hug? I think I could use it right now,” Adam said with a thick voice. And as they hugged, he felt similar to that first evening he had spent with Austin, drunk on happiness and heart bursting with an indescribable emotion that made him vow to protect that golden-haired boy and the happiness in his blue eyes at all costs.

Christmas Eve was a blast. Adam had annoyed Chance throughout the entire morning, still high on the sass thanks to the painkillers he took with meticulous regularity every hour.  
“I have the best idea!” he had declared, bursting into Chance’s office at quarter past six.  
“Adam, what the hell. You are on sick leave, why don’t you _sleep_?”  
Adam shrugged. “Not tired. _And_ , I have the best idea!”  
“Shoot.”  
“We should do the show tonight together. Like, all five of us. To celebrate Christmas, and, well, us.”  
“You do recall that we drew up an emergency schedule yesterday because you sprained your ankle and can’t walk?”  
Chance was quiet for a few minutes. He seemed to rethink what he had just said.  
“…How did you get here?”  
Adam’s grin got wider. “I deep-froze my ankle.”  
Chance paused for a moment. “You did not.”  
“Yes I did.”  
For a moment he stared at his friend incredulously. Then, he decided that it was too early to deal with this insane version of Adam, and left to get himself a coffee. He had an entire, blessed thirty minutes of peace before his friend found him once more.  
By the time the late morning shift rolled around, Chance had given in to Adam’s ridiculous pestering. In exchange, he had banned him from performing any more shows until New Year’s Eve and made him promise to dial it down on the painkillers. Adam was willing to make that deal. Despite all the fun, he found it slightly creepy how the drugs affected him. Instead, he started to gently infuse his right arm with icy coldness and tried to move it as little as possible. The result was bearable, and he started to feel more like himself again. Still, he stuck with his idea and refused to be benched for the Christmas Eve performance.  
It was an amazing night. The golden lights had never shone brighter than now that they were standing in the spotlight all together. Sharing the stage with Austin was even better than listening to him sing. Falling into step beside each other felt as natural as if they’d done nothing else all their lives, five voices ringing out in perfect harmony, and he felt overwhelmed by gratefulness and joy as all of them put the arms around each other’s shoulders and bowed to a frantically clapping audience. In that instant, his mind went back to the old picture in Chance’s office, and he whispered happily to himself “I guess it’s time for another picture now.”

Later, after everybody had left for their quarters, Adam invited Austin up to “his” deck. The sky above them stretched in infinite blackness and was dotted with stars that shone out brightly in the cold night. The silence was welcome after the festive buzz of the evening. For a long time, they just stood there at the railing, side by side, and watched the endlessness of the sky and the sea and the small clouds their breath was leaving in the air before the breeze dispersed them. Tonight, Adam decided, wasn’t the time for glittering ice magic, tonight was time to be spent with a friend.  
“Beautiful, isn’t it, up here,” he murmured.  
Austin nodded. “I’ve never seen so many stars before.”  
“It’s the sea. There are no city lights, nothing to distract from them.”  
Austin nodded again. Adam put his good arm around the younger man’s back and they continued watching the night sky in silence.

Adam stood to his word and returned the rest of the painkillers to the doctor when he went to get his foot and arm checked. His ankle seemed to be healing alright, but getting the bandage on his arm changed was a painful process. Even with the secret assistance of his ice it took a lot of deep breathing and self-control to not cry out and freeze the medical assistant into the next century. When he was finally done, he started roaming the ship in search of a distraction from the disturbing sensation of ice and fire carrying out a battle underneath his burnt skin. It was weird to not be on duty. For as long as he could remember, he had hardly spent a day aboard the ship without something to do. But today, Chance threw him out of his office and told him to rest, Tim was working and Rob was asleep, resting himself for the show and the late shift. He resolved to go and look for Austin. He already had a fairly good idea where the younger man might be spending his break.  
Austin threw him a small smile when he stepped through the glass door out into the open. The wind was stronger here at the bow of the ship, blowing the hair out of Adam’s face and letting Austin’s golden curls dance in the pale sunlight. For the first time he realized what a beautiful day it was.  
“Nice weather, huh,” he said with a grin. Austin snorted. “You’re a dork, Adam, you know that? Tim was right.”  
“He has his moments.”  
Adam went to stand next to Austin. He winced slightly when his right hand accidentally brushed the railing. The younger man’s eyes were drawn to the bandage. “How’s your arm?”  
Adam shrugged. “Feels nasty, to be honest, but it’s better than before.”  
“I’m so sorry… if I hadn’t been such a clumsy idiot, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt.” Austin looked incredibly contrite.  
“Nah, don’t take all the credit, I was just as bad. I mean, there was no need for me to lose my balance after catching you, was there?”  
“Still…”  
Adam shook his head. “Please don’t beat yourself up over it. I would do it again; at least you didn’t crash into the cabinets or head first into a pile of cutlery.” He was only partly joking.  
Austin sighed and looked down into the churning water. There didn’t seem to be a way to dissuade him from feeling guilty. Instead, Adam did something he had been meaning to try again since that moment in the kitchens. He extended his good hand and put it on top of Austin’s right, which rested on the cold railing.  
This time, he was prepared for the violent onslaught of coldness, the empty and desolate sensation. ‘What has happened to you?’ he wondered silently. He had seen the warmth and the light in Austin’s eyes when he had been singing and laughing with them on Christmas Eve. He couldn’t begin to imagine what had the power to take this away, turn it ice cold.  
It might not be his place, yet he had to ask. But where to start? Finally, he settled on “Why did you leave, the other evening? You know, the performance?” Austin sighed and shook his head, somewhat impatiently. “It was nothing. I was being stupid.” Annoyance and self-deprecation were in his voice, but the pained expression in his eyes told a different story. So Adam just waited, looking at his friend in silence. He absently played with his fingers, and when he continued speaking, his words were slow and heavy.  
“The song you were singing. Do you remember it?”  
The song? Adam frowned in thought. He hadn’t done anything special that night, just the usual repertoire, and he wasn’t completely sure which one he’d been singing when Austin left. It couldn’t have been too old, he still had to concentrate on the words – oh, right! There was one fairly recent song that had been increasing in popularity lately, ‘climbing the charts’ if you could take Tim’s word for it. The bass was the only one of their group who bothered with buying that music magazine, _Billboard_. Whenever they had time to go ashore during one of their stops, he would unfailingly return with the latest issue, informing the rest of them about the most popular songs of the past weeks and adjusting their show accordingly. Last time that had happened was at the start of December, when Austin had come aboard.  
“You mean the new one by Guy Mitchell? ‘Singing the Blues?’”  
He started humming the melody under his breath. Austin nodded, looking embarrassed. “Look, I told you it was stupid.” Adam stopped humming and looked at him questioningly. Austin picked up where he had left off, supplying the end of the verse.  
“'Cause everythin’s wrong, and nothin’ ain’t right/Without you/You got me singin’ the blues.” He sighed again. “Might as well be me.”  
Adam quickly went through the lyrics in his head. Oh. “Somebody left you?” Austin lifted his shoulders. “I know, it sounds pathetic –” Adam shushed him. “If it gets to you like this, it’s not,” he said softly. “I’ve known you for, what? Two weeks? Not even, and I’ve seen what you’re like when you’re happy. This –,” he motioned at Austin, “isn’t you. Blue ain’t your colour. It must have been something bad to drag you down like this.”  
“Not something”, Austin said hoarsely. “Some _one_.” He paused and took a shaky breath. “A… a guy.”  
He tensed, waiting for Adam’s reaction with trepidation.  
“Hey,” Adam said quietly, “don’t look at me like I’m gonna throw you overboard. For all I care, McCarthy and Cohn can go to hell and the President can put his Executive Order 10450 where the sun doesn’t shine.” Austin laughed shakily. “My parents didn’t think so when they found out.”  
Adam silently squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. Austin helplessly shook his head. “I was expecting it. It – it would have been alright. We were planning on moving away anyway. I was crashing at his place until we had saved enough money. It was good, it was _perfect_. I loved him so much, he was my entire _life_ –” His voice broke and he covered his face with his hands, shoulders shaking silently. He didn’t continue speaking for a long time.  
When he did, his voice was empty, resigned. “He met a girl. I became… expendable. I guess it was just easier than constantly having to hide or fear judgement… or maybe I hadn’t been that important to begin with… Just a distraction until he found something better…” He trailed off, falling silent once more. For a while, he was just standing there, staring into nothingness, lost in gloomy thoughts.  
“The night he left, it felt like he took my entire life with him. Since then I’ve just been… existing. Sorta.” He took a few deep breaths, trying to get himself back together.  
“And when you were singing that song, it reminded me – I was in a bar that night, I heard the song on the radio and I just – I had to get away, I couldn’t deal with it. I just want to forget any of this ever happened.” He dragged his hands over his eyes and heavily leant on the wall. “But I – I can’t. Because wherever I go I am reminded that I am alone, that I need to earn enough money to get myself food and a place to sleep and I can’t fuck up ‘cause then I have nowhere to go, but people won’t want me around anyway, ‘cause If I were worth anybody’s time, they wouldn’t have thrown me out, he wouldn’t have left me when I was giving _everything_ –“ His voice cracked and he was breathing fast, hands still hiding his eyes. Seeing Austin like this made Adam feel like somebody had stabbed him in the heart with a knife. There was so much he wanted to say, but words didn’t seem to do the situation justice. Nonetheless, he needed to say _something_.  
Adam leant over and gently put his left hand on Austin’s shoulder. “But you aren’t alone”, he whispered. “You got us now. The crew is family.” He leant against the wall next to the younger one and ticked them off one by one on his fingers. “You got Chance, who can solve any problem and takes care of his employees as if they were his own children. He’ll be there for you whenever, whatever for. You got Tim, the biggest troll and man-child with the smoothest dark chocolate earthquake of voices. You got Rob, with his literal heart of gold and enough warmth and comfort to outshine any camp fire. And…. you got me, for what it’s worth. I’m not going anywhere.” He pulled Austin into an uncoordinated, one-armed hug. “You are more than worth every single second of time I spend with you. Don’t allow anybody to take your life away like that.” The younger man buried his face in Adam’s jacket, just for a moment. Again, Adam felt the frozen void within his friend and slowly, gently, he reached out with his own powers, taking in the unfamiliar sensation and suppressing a shudder. He had never done anything like this, hadn’t even been aware it was possible – nor did he know what _it_ was, exactly – and it felt incredibly strange. Nonetheless, he brought a tiny piece of the alien coldness with him when he pulled back. He sent it off with the wind, wondering. Would Austin notice?  
Indeed, when the younger man straightened up again, eyes slightly reddened, there was a hint of calmness and peace in his expression that hadn’t been there before. “Thanks, Adam”, he said softly.  
“You know, I really appreciate you being here… I didn’t think talking would make any difference, but it did.”  
Adam simply nodded. “Anytime.” For a little while they seemed to be in the center of their own universe, facing each other, leaning against the wall in this remote corner of the ship, surrounded by sunlight and wind. The passing of time seemed inconsequential.  
Then, Adam moved to grab Austin’s hand once more. In the spur of the moment, he had made a decision. “Come along, I want to show you something!”  
He pulled his friend along, back inside, down the corridors and up the wooden stairs to the back entrance of the kitchen. “Just a second!”, he promised and slipped through the door. He returned quickly, carrying two cups of spiced wine. With his head, he motioned Austin to keep following him. Once more, they emerged on the highest deck, now bathed in sunlight and roofed by light grey clouds. A quick glance at the surroundings assured Adam that they were alone. He passed Austin one of the cups and kept the other for himself.  
“What did you want to show me?”  
Adam smiled a tiny little smile. “Don’t tell anybody about this…” He deeply inhaled the spicy scent of the hot drink and took a small sip. As he exhaled, his breath clouded in the cold winter air. With a flick of his finger, he turned thousands of the little water droplets into glittering ice crystals and gathered them around his hand. One flowing movement draped them around Austin’s shoulders ever so gently. “I figured, since you told me your secret, you should also know mine.” Slowly, he lifted his eyes to meet those of the younger man. Austin was staring at him in wonder. “But how…?”  
Adam shook his head. “I have no idea. It’s just how it is.” He lifted his shoulders, smiling again. “I just go with it. Apart from Chance, nobody knows. I don’t want to become a tourist attraction, after all.”  
He reached over and pushed a strand of golden hair out of Austin’s face, leaving a streak of frost on it that reflected the sunlight in glints of silver. “But sometimes, I think it’s too beautiful to keep it all to myself.”  
He stepped over to the railing, taking another sip. Warmth flooded through him as Austin stepped to his side. “Drink up before the wine goes cold.” He couldn’t resist adorning the rim of the cup with a circle of white snowflakes, setting off the deep, clear red of the liquid.  
Austin shook his head in disbelief. “Adam, this… this is amazing. You’re really one-of-a-kind, you know that? All the things you could do…”  
Adam laughed softly as his tone became more enthusiastic. “I never tried out _all_ I could do. I’d rather just enjoy the moment as it comes.” And he did. Sun on his closed eyelids, fresh wind in his face, the sharp taste of spices and alcohol on his tongue and warmth running through his veins. Life was exactly as he wanted it to be.

Austin was changing. Adam had made it his mission to see to that: With every smile, every word they exchanged, every fleeting touch, he took away a piece of the bleak coldness from within the younger man and sent it back to the depths of the sea or out into the endless skies. And gradually, the personality that had been buried beneath was beginning to emerge again. Austin was starting to come out of his shell, talking to people, spending time with the team. The lingering sadness and insecurities were falling away, being discarded one by one as he grew stronger than the thoughts that had haunted him before. Bit by bit, he was rediscovering his radiant smile, boundless excitement and energy. In fact, he was readily befriending the entire crew from the chefs in the kitchen to his former colleagues down in the engine room, enchanting everybody with his quick wit, easy manner and bright, free laughter. He was taking the spotlight in every single show he was singing, and he was shining brighter than anybody would have ever imagined before.

Adam was going through the days between Christmas and New Year like in a dream. Instead of work there were hours spent with the wind, the sea and the sun, long nights filled with the dance of snowflakes and a deep, all-encompassing silence, and in between, most cherished of all, an endless series of moments spent with Austin. Card games and eating together in the mess hall, singing along to songs on the radio, breaks spent on the deck with spiced wine, soft words and arms resting on each other’s shoulders. The things that were said between the two of them were kept close to Adam’s heart and put a lingering smile on his face whenever he thought about them.

(“I am glad to have you. Ice and snowflakes, thoughts aligned to the rhythm of your own song, silent presence, strength, security.”

“And you, golden sunlight, voice like the wind, flying sky-high, boundless energy, brightness and warmth.”

“Please, never leave.”

“Promise.”)

Finally, the last day of the year arrived. From the early hours of morning on, the ship was filled with bustling activity as preparations for the New Year’s Eve celebration were being completed. Adam met a sleepy Chance in the mess hall when he went for breakfast at half past five.  
“Morning, lovebird,” Chance greeted him drily. Adam snorted.  
“Don’t think I’m not seeing the looks you guys give me and Austin. Let a man be happy, dang it!” But his laughter took the bite out of his words.  
“Wouldn’t dream of doing anything else.”  
Adam shook his head with an exasperated smile. “Y’all are such dorks.”  
“Says the man who hangs a necklace made from ice flowers around his boyfriend’s neck,” Chance retorted. Adam blushed. “I – we aren’t –” He turned to the door as Tim entered.  
“Aww, Chance, what did you say to get him this flustered?”  
“Nothing,” Chance replied with an angelic expression. “Ugh, you are both terrible,” Adam groaned. “And you’re adorable,” Tim returned. He gave Adam a brief hug. “You know, me and Rob and Chance are really happy for you.”  
“Thanks. You’re still terrible, though.”  
“Shut your mouth and go be happy.”

So that’s what Adam did. He spent his day helping Rob and Austin redecorate the stage and get rid of all the gold and glitter. It got replaced by fake snowflakes and shining blue and silver, turning the atmosphere in the room all wintery despite the warm inside temperature. Any time Adam saw Austin carry a blue piece of decoration, he made it a point to steal it from him with a smirk, reiterating what he had told the other man on Christmas Day: “Blue ain’t your colour. It’s mine.”  
Every time, Austin would break into a fit of uncontrollable laughter and Rob soon gave up trying to figure out what was the joke. They had a good time. As the evening approached and the cloudy sky outside the broad windows turned dark the restaurant slowly began to fill with people. Dinner was a cheerful affair. The guests were in a festive mood, anticipation filled the air and soon, the music got turned up. They started the show early, clearing the area before the stage to create a dance floor. There was plenty of champagne and celebration as, once more, all five of them went on stage together and delivered the latest hits in stunning five-part harmony. As midnight was approaching, Tim claimed the microphone and addressed the crowd. “The year is almost over, and I hope y’all are having a good time with us!” The crowd started cheering. “So, for this last song, I want to invite y’all to get on the dance floor one last time before we go outside to welcome 1957! Go crazy!” He threw Adam a meaningful look. Adam turned his back on him and offered Austin his hand in the manner of a perfect gentleman. “May I ask for this dance?” he asked with a slight bow and a broad smile on his face. “You may,” Austin laughed and took his hand. Somewhere behind him, he heard Rob whistle as he stepped down from the stage and onto the dance floor. He didn't mind. This was amazing.

It was ten minutes to midnight and the guests were starting to clear out of the room in order to go outside for the fireworks when the first mate entered the room with a message from the captain. “There’s a severe weather warning incoming, we’re expecting to run into a storm within the next twenty minutes. Off-duty staff and passengers are advised to stay in their quarters.”  
Rob groaned. “Of course, on New Year’s Eve. Things were going too well.”  
But Adam silently shook his head to himself. “Stay inside tonight? Like hell!” he whispered to Austin and dragged him off toward the kitchens. “Don’t do anything stupid, Adam, or so help me!” He heard Chance shout after him, but he didn’t mind his friend. He had a plan.  
“What are you doing?” Austin panted, trying to keep up with him. Adam gave him a grin. “I plan to find out _what exactly_ I can do with this –,” he flicked his hand and sent a soft touch of cold air toward the other’s face, still flushed from their dancing.  
“Then why are we in the kitchens?”  
Adam’s grin broadened. “Remember the first evening we spent together? Turns out alcohol gives my powers a boost. I only found out that night.”  
“So now – Adam, _no_!” Austin scolded as he saw Adam grab a bottle of rum from the pantry. “Oh, but I reckon I will need a hell of a lot of power for an entire storm,” Adam smirked. “Let’s get up on deck!” Austin sighed and ran after him.

Outside, the wind was coming in strong gusts, almost sweeping them off their feet as they struggled up the stairs, holding onto the railing made slippery by icy rain. The waves were growing taller, rocking the entire ship. Freezing cold drops of salt water hit their faces. It was hard to see anything in the darkness. Finally they reached Adam’s usual spot. The decks were deserted and the roar of wind and sea carried away the protest on Austin’s lips upon seeing his friend down the bottle in one go. He bent close to Adams ear and screamed “You’re absolutely insane, do you know that?”  
Adam smiled, looking strangely at peace in the midst of this battle of the elements. He carefully tucked the empty bottle into the inside pocket of his jacket and then turned towards the sea, lifting both hands and closing his eyes.

This. This was where he was meant to be. Adam could feel everything around him with astounding clarity: the streams of warm and cold air rushing around him, rising up to the sky and crashing down into the icy surface of the ocean, the snow and sleet swirling in clouds above his head and the presence of Austin like a single golden point of warmth next to him in the center of the turmoil. He could sense the flow of clear, cold power in his veins, collecting at the tip of his fingers, tingling in anticipation. He held his breath and kept it there, just for a few seconds. In this moment, the entire world belonged to him. Then, slowly releasing the air he had been holding, he began to rearrange his surroundings in a way he liked better.

One by one, the gusts of wind fell silent. The waves began to even out, becoming sluggish as the water started to freeze. The clouds started dispersing, sending ice and snow in soft swirls down around the ship. Where it hit the water, chunks of ice started forming and racing along the crests of the waves in glittering trails. Finally, the entire ocean around them had stilled. It was covered by sheets of ice, the occasional frozen wave creating a gentle rise in the endless, white landscape that had formed. Adam let his right hand sink down and opened his eyes. “There we are,” he chuckled quietly. “The captain should work on his weather predictions. I see no storm. We are stuck in ice, that’s what we are!”  
He surveyed his work and nodded with satisfaction. “And there’s absolutely no need to remain indoors any more on this beautiful New Year’s Eve.” Austin shook his head in amazement. “You’re really something else.” He gave Adam a warm smile.  
Slowly, the crew and passengers were emerging onto the lower decks, looking around in wonder. But Adam wasn’t done yet. He his left hand was still lifted toward the sky as he turned around and looked at Austin. His eyes were filled with deep joy and affection. “Did I ever tell you how much you light up my world?” he whispered. Austin’s face grew soft. “Only about a million times. I love you, you dork.”  
Adam smiled. “And I love you. You deserve the world. Let me paint it a bit brighter for you.” He stepped towards Austin, parting the clouds with a flick of his hand to reveal the full moon. The world around them turned ice blue as the pale light fell onto the frozen ocean and the glittering snowflakes all around them. He wrapped his arms around the younger man, putting their foreheads together. Once more, they became the center of their own, perfect universe.

 

(“Adam, are you making the snow curl around us?”

“Maybe?”

“Stop it, people will notice.”

He started laughing, blissfully, uncontrollably. “I can’t help it. I’m drunk, remember.”

“Well, then I just gotta make you stop.” And he kissed him.

And over their heads stars were shining and fireworks started exploding as they left the old year behind.)

**Author's Note:**

> (I swear I didn't try to rip off Frozen with Adam's powers.)  
> (And I swear I did my best to get the 50s right, but give me a break, I didn't live back then :D)


End file.
